LESS. THOSE STORIES RIGHT NOW ON MATTER OF FACT. RONALD REAGAN ONCE SAID, BASEBALL IS OUR NATIONAL PASTIME. UM, THAT IS, IF YOU DISCOUNT POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING. SO AS WE BEGIN THE LONGEST GENERAL ELECTION SEASON IN RECENT HISTORY, WE’RE TALKING A BIT ABOUT BOTH POLITICS AND BASEBALL AND THERE’S NO ONE BETTER TO DO THAT WITH THAN ROY WOOD JR. THE COMEDIAN PULLS NO PUNCHES IN THE POLITICAL REALM. THIS IS A MIRACLE. WE DON’T PASS LAWS. YOU MAKE A PROMISE TO VOTERS AND THEN YOU DON’T DO IT. BUT EVEN AS HIS NATIONAL PROFILE GROWS, WOOD HAS STAYED TRUE TO HIS ALABAMA ROOTS. OUR CAMERAS WERE WITH HIM AS HE VISITED HIS HIGH SCHOOL IN BIRMINGHAM THE OTHER DAY. HASN’T CHANGED A BIT. IT’S WHERE HE PLAYED BASEBALL. THEY’VE WON A LOT SINCE I WAS HERE LAST. WE WERE NOT THAT GOOD BACK THEN. PRETTY MUCH EVERY YEAR NOW, WOOD VISITS THE TEAM. IT’S PART OF HIS CONTINUED INVESTMENT IN HIS HOME STATE, A STATE THAT TOOK A STEP CLOSER TO MAKING HISTORY ON TUESDAY. NOW ON THE CUSP OF SENDING A SECOND BLACK LAWMAKER TO THE U.S. CONGRESS, ROY WOOD JR. SO NICE TO HAVE YOU IN THE STUDIO. THANKS FOR JOINING ME. THANK YOU. WHY DO YOU TO GO BACK AND INVEST SO MUCH TIME IN YOUR HOMETOWN? AS YOU KNOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE GET FAMOUS AND THE FIRST OR SECOND THING THEY DO IS LIKE, BUY, YOU KNOW, I LOVE IT THERE, BUT I’M NOT COMING BACK. WELL, I HAVE TO COME BACK BECAUSE MY MAMA THERE AND SHE’LL GET MAD. I DON’T KNOW IF YOU KNOW ABOUT MAMAS, BUT THEY WANT TO SEE THE GRANDBABY. SO I GOT TO GET THE BOY. WE GET ON THE PLANE, AND THEN WHILE I’M THERE, I’M LIKE, YOU KNOW WHAT? LET ME GO SWING BY THE BASEBALL FIELD, SEE WHAT’S GOING ON FOR ME. BASEBALL WAS ALWAYS A PLACE WHERE I HAD PEACE AND CALM AND ONCE I GOT OLDER AND YOU START SEEING THE ECONOMICS OF BASEBALL, IT’S A VERY EXPENSIVE SPORT TO PLAY. NOW WE’RE TALKING ABOUT KIDS GETTING PRICED OUT OF IT. AND SO IF THERE’S AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE A CONDUIT FOR DRAWING ATTENTION TO THE TEAM AND SUPPORT TO PEOPLE WHO ARE TRYING TO POUR INTO THE LIVES OF YOUTH IN THE CITY, POSITIVELY, I’M HERE TO COSIGN ON THAT AS MUCH AS I CAN. I GO BACK TO BIRMINGHAM BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE IF I DON’T, NOBODY ELSE WILL. MOST PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT FROM THE CRIB, Y’ALL DISREGARD US. Y’ALL BLOW US OFF. I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE MAKE A MISTAKE OF THINKING THAT THE NEWS THAT COMES OUT OF ALABAMA REPRESENTS ALL OF THE PEOPLE THAT ARE IN ALABAMA, AND THAT’S NOT THE TRUTH. I JUST KNOW THAT I’VE BEEN BLESSED ENOUGH TO HAVE A CAREER WHERE FOR IF I CHOSE TO, TO TRY AND DO SOMETHING DECENT IN THE CITY, I CAN’T CHANGE EVERYTHING. I CAN’T CHANGE ALL THE LAWS. I CAN’T GO DOWN TO MONTGOMERY AND TELL THEM TO STOP GERRYMANDERING. BUT IF I CAN MAKE SURE THESE COUPLE OF BLACK KIDS PLAY A SPORT AND STAY DEDICATED TO IT, THEN MAYBE THEY’LL HAVE A FUTURE IN THAT SPORT. MORE THAN A QUARTER OF ALABAMA’S RESIDENTS ARE BLACK, BUT OF YOUR SEVEN MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, ONLY ONLY ONE IS BLACK. THE SUPREME COURT NOW HAS STEPPED IN. RIGHT. SO I GUESS I’M CURIOUS IF YOU THINK THE TIDE IS CHANGING AT ALL WHEN IT COMES TO POWER FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN VOTERS IN ALABAMA. WE’LL SEE IF THE TIDE IS CHANGING. I THINK THAT DEPENDS ON HOW THE STATE OF ALABAMA RESPONDS, BECAUSE YOU CAN REDRAW THE DISTRICTS. BUT NOW HOW MANY POLLING STATIONS ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE OPEN IN THOSE BLACK PARTS OF TOWN? IT’S GOING TO BE THE HOURS. I KIND OF PUT IT LIKE POLITICS IN ALABAMA IS LIKE WHERE TO BE BLACK IN ALABAMA IS TO HAVE YOUR BIG BROTHER IN MONTGOMERY TELLING YOU WHAT TO DO, AND THEN MOM AND DAD COME DOWN FROM FROM DC AND GO, YOU BETTER STOP DOING THAT TO YOUR LITTLE BROTHER. AND THEY GO, OKAY, WE WANT. AND THEN MOM AND DAD LEAVE. AND THEN BIG BROTHER FIGURES OUT ANOTHER WAY TO STILL DO SOMETHING TO KICK YOU AND PUNCH YOU AND PINCH YOU. SO I DON’T KNOW WHAT THE COUNTER IS GOING TO BE. I DON’T THINK THAT YOU CAN FOR ONE SECOND AND THINK THAT BECAUSE WASHINGTON, DC IS TELLING ALABAMA WHAT THEY SHOULD DO, THAT ALABAMA IS GOING TO IMMEDIATELY COMPLY. IT LOOKS AS IF PRESIDENT TRUMP IS MAKING INROADS WITH BLACK VOTERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. I’M CURIOUS IF YOU HAVE THOUGHTS ON WHY THAT IS. I DON’T KNOW IF TRUMP IS NECESSARILY MAKING INROADS AS MUCH AS PRESIDENT BIDEN HAS LOST TRACTION, SOME WITH BLACK VOTERS. AND I DO THINK WE’RE IN AN ELECTION CYCLE NOW WHERE WE’RE IN INDIVIDUAL PARTS AS VOTERS, AND IT’S ABOUT MY DEMANDS AND WHAT I WANT AND WHAT I WANT TO DO. THERE’S PEOPLE I KNOW, BLACK PEOPLE THAT’S GOING TO VOTE, VOTE FOR TRUMP SOLELY BECAUSE OF THE COVID CHECKS HE GAVE US THE COVID CHECKS. SO I’M GOING TO VOTE FOR HIM. UM, I DO THINK YOU HAVE TO CONSIDER WHY YOU WOULD VOTE FOR SOMEBODY WHO THINKS THAT SNEAKERS IS HOW THEY SHOULD ENGAGE YOU. I DO THINK THAT’S A LITTLE TROUBLING. UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT A LOT OF IT JUST APPEALED. LIKE TRUMP JUST ATTEMPTS TO APPEAL TO A COOLNESS FACTOR THAT PRESIDENT BIDEN DOESN’T NECESSARILY POSSESS BECAUSE, AS I BELIEVE THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION IS LIKE, HEY, LOOK, THESE ARE THE POLICIES. THIS IS WHAT WE’RE TRYING TO DO. THIS IS WHAT WE’VE DONE. ROCK WITH US. NO, I DON’T WATCH ATLANTA COULD NAME AN EPISODE. SO I THINK THERE’S A DEGREE OF, YOU KNOW, DISCONNECT AND HOW, YOU KNOW, NECESSARILY SHOULD BE ENGAGING WITH VOTERS. I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE BURNED OUT. AND I THINK YOU’RE RIGHT. THE POLICY CONVERSATION IS MORE COMPLICATED, AND IT’S OFTEN LOST. COMEDIANS, I THINK, HAVE THE ONLY REFRESHING WAY OFTEN TO LIKE, DIG INTO THESE. I HATE TO SAY IT, BUT IT’S TRUE. YEAH. I MEAN, COMEDY HELPS US UNDERSTAND ISSUES, BUT I THINK THAT BECAUSE WE’VE BECOME SO MUCH MORE SERIOUS AS A VOTING BODY, I FEEL LIKE THERE’S BEEN AN UNFAIR RESPONSIBILITY PLACED AT THE FEET OF COMEDIANS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEMS. YOUR COMEDY IS NOT SERIOUS ENOUGH. YOU’RE NOT DOING ENOUGH TO FIGHT THE ISSUE. IT’S LIKE, WHOA, I’M NOT A POLITICIAN. THERE’S A MUCH BIGGER CONVERSATION THAT’S BEEN HAPPENING OF LATE ABOUT COMEDIANS AND WHAT RESPONSIBILITY WE HAVE. WHAT RESPONSIBILITY DID WE HAVE TEN YEARS AGO? 15 YEARS AGO, 20 YEARS AGO, IT WAS STILL BOMBS. THERE WAS STILL DEATH. SO WHAT CHANGED? AND I THINK I THINK THE ONLY THING THAT CHANGED IS THE PUBLIC’S EXPECTATIONS AND WHAT THEY WANT FROM SOMEONE THAT HAS ALWAYS DONE THE SAME THING.